NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center has forecast an unusually active Atlantic hurricane season this year. Forecasters are calling for 14 to 23 named storms in the 2010 hurricane season. An average year would only see 11 named storms (with top winds of 39 mph or higher) in the Atlantic Basin.
Key factors in the formation of Atlantic hurricanes are warm water — temps are now four degrees Fahrenheit above average — and reduced wind shear in the upper atmosphere. Last year strong wind shear from El Nino in the Pacific quashed Atlantic hurricane formation.
Click here for the full forecast from NOAA.
Here’s an update from the Weather Underground for more context.
Hurricane Ike, 2008 -- NOAA
